HOT ROD Drag Week Rules and Schedule

Drag Week puts competitors'vehicles to the test at five dragstrips on five consecutive days in fivedifferent states, and the lowest average e.t. wins. The kicker is thatall vehicles must drive from track to track with no trailers or supportvehicles allowed, so over-the-road dependability will be just asimportant as brute acceleration. And unlike Pump Gas Drags and heads-updrag racing classes, there are very few rules and you can do whateveryou want to the car at any time, so long as it doesn't involve a traileror a support vehicle. Everything you need, including tools, parts, andspares, must be carried from track to track in the vehicle or in atrailer pulled by the vehicle.

The event will start in Kansas City on Sunday, September 11, withvehicle registration, tech inspection, and a kickoff party. Racingcommences Monday at Kansas City International Raceway. You can make asmany passes as you want until we close the lanes. Once you're satisfiedwith your e.t. (or you run out of time), hand your best timeslip to theHOT ROD official and hit the road to the next track. Though there won'tbe an organized caravan from track to track, there will be a requiredroute with checkpoints and other surprises to ensure that a competitordoesn't roll out of the gate, drive three miles, and load their car on atrailer to make the rest of the trip. The tracks will be open for a settime and competitors must make it to every venue and at least take thegreen light under their own power or they are disqualified.

Race and repeat for five days, and by the time we wrap it up in Martin,Michigan, you will have completed the first ever HOT ROD Drag Week. Thevehicle with the lowest average e.t. will be declared the winner andwill receive a HOT ROD Drag Week jacket and plenty of glory in thepages of HOT ROD. We're also working on sponsorship and a prize package.This is not an invitational, so anyone and any vehicle is eligible aslong as it meets our short list of rules. This is ideal for any ProTouring guy who wants to prove the value of his 1,100hp twin-turbo setupor for any drag racer who swears he has a street car, but has a carthat's too hard core for the Pump Gas Drags. It will also be a stoneriot for anyone who wants to attend just for fun. Got a 12-second dailydriver? Bring it on! Reaction has been good, but a frequent impressionis that nothing but EFI turbo cars should bother to apply. Not so. We'dlike to have people view Drag Week as a hard-core Power Tour(TM) forguys who'd rather race at every stop than just sit at a cruise night.Any car can come no matter how slow, and for $125, why not get thechance to race five top tracks and see lots of radical equipment alongthe way? The 12- to 10-second cars should outweigh the 8-second killersby a good margin, and anyone who shows up and impresses us has a greatchance of getting a photo or even a feature in the magazine. Drag Weekneeds to be hot competition amidst a big party of a road trip.

To encourage more people to join, we've added several class breakdownsso that more cars have a chance to win. The Drag Week rules seen in theJuly issue and on HOTROD.com still stand, but now you can win in one offive categories. Daily Driver will be for cars that run 12.00 seconds orslower in the quarter-mile and are therefore exempt from NHRA rollbarrules. The winning car for the Daily Driver class will be the one thataverages closest to 12.000 seconds without going quicker (mph will bethe tie-breaker, and no bracket-race electronics or throttle-stops areallowed). There will also be winners awarded in four unlimited-e.t.classes, and cars in those classes will also compete against each otherfor the overall win. Those classes will be Naturally AspiratedSmall-Block (423ci and smaller), Naturally Aspirated Big-Block (424ciand bigger) as well as Boost/Nitrous Small-Block and Boost/NitrousBig-Block with the same displacement limits.

The Schedule

All racetracks will be open and ready for runs for a fixed window oftime (still to be determined). Closing ceremonies will take place uponthe completion of the event and after we tabulate the results.

Monday, September 12Kansas City International RacewayKansas City, MO 64138

Tuesday, September 13Gateway International RacewayMadison, IL 62060

Wednesday, September 14Beech Bend RacewayBowling Green, KY 42101

Thursday, September 15National Trail RacewayHebron, OH 43025

Friday, September 16U.S. 131 RacewayMartin, MI 49070

DRAG WEEK RULES

* Open to any four-wheeled vehicle make or model, import or domestic.

* All vehicles must have current license, registration, and proof ofinsurance. No dealer plates.

* All vehicles must meet all NHRA safety rules for the e.t. and speedthey are capable of. Running quicker than the safety equipment allows iscause for instant disqualification.

* Any vehicle found being towed or hauled during the course of theevent will be immediately disqualified.

* Support vehicles of any kind are prohibited. All supplies must becarried onboard the vehicle or in a trailer pulled by the vehicle.

* Any repairs, changes, or modifications may be performed on thevehicle at any time. There is no impound.

* Any fuel may be used.

Questions?

There will, of course, be questions about Drag Week. E-mail them to usat HOTROD@primedia.com, and put "Drag Week" in the subject line

Event logistics

* All racetracks will be open and ready for runs for a specifiedwindow of time (which we're still nailing down with each track). It isthe participants' responsibility to get to the track and make runsduring the allotted time. No runs will be allowed outside the officialhours.

* Each vehicle must at least take the green under its own power atevery track within the allotted time window. Pushing or towing to thestarting line is not allowed.

* Participants may make as many runs as possible in the allottedtime.

* Upon completion of the runs, present your best timeslip to the HOTROD official for recording.

* The winner will be the vehicle with the lowest average e.t. overall five tracks. Ties will broken by average e.t.